It's easy to see a Lexus crossover and assume it's a country-club cream puff with a core as soft and squishy as its leather seats. But that was the old Lexus—the new Lexus has the IS sedan and the upcoming RC coupe to reset expectations. The turbocharged 2015 Lexus NX 200t (and 300h hybrid) shares a little of its soul with the deft IS sedan—it's a Lexus crossover that won't completely fall apart on a fun road. Here are five things I learned after a day behind the wheel.

1. It's essentially a RAV4 with serious suspension implants

The NX shares a platform with the Toyota RAV4, but so much has been upgraded, strengthened, or modified that the two vehicles don't feel related (this is a good thing). The two crossovers do ride on the same wheelbase, but the NX is slightly longer and about 500 lbs heavier. Flip the NX on its lid like a turtle and you'll find additional stiffening braces across the width of the frame—responsible for some of the extra heft. Although the geometry of the suspension is the same, some of the mounts, as well as the links themselves, have been re-tooled for stiffness and more accurate tolerances. All this fussing is evident on a twisty road.

2. The new turbo four is tech-savvy, but it's no fire-breather

The NX 200t features a new 235-hp, 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that generates 258 lb-ft of torque. It's the first turbocharged engine ever installed in a Lexus and likely won't be the last. Following the latest trends, the exhaust manifold is cast right into the cylinder head. Integrated exhaust manifolds offer a number of benefits—packaging, efficiency, and improved emissions being a few.

This 2.0-liter is the first application of Lexus's 'Variable Valve Timing with intelligence Wider' (VVT-iW). VVT-iW allows a wider range of intake-cam timing control. Under light loads, the timing can be advanced to allow the engine to operate in the efficient Atkinson cycle, improving fuel economy. Lexus says the AWD NX should hit 21 mpg city and 28 mpg on the highway. But when you get back into the throttle, the cam timing returns the engine to the Otto cycle for increased torque. The inline-four is paired to a massaged and strengthened version of the six-speed automatic used in the RAV4, and the optional all-wheel-drive system is similar to the RAV4's, too.

The new turbo four might be smart, but oddly, it's not super-quick off the line. Scrolling the drive mode rotary dial from 'Eco' to 'Sport' sharpens the throttle response and wakes up the transmission. But punch the right pedal from a stoplight, and—wait for it—there's some lag before the boost hits around 2200 rpm. Lexus says the torque plateau begins as low as 1650 rpm, but we didn't feel it that early. The NX 300h Hybrid model, which is less powerful and should hit 33 mpg city and 30 on the highway with AWD, actually feels as though it might beat it to 30 mph. Lexus says the all-wheel-drive turbo will reach 60 mph in 7.0 seconds. That's at the low end of the class average.

3. This is F Sport "Lite"

The NX's F Sport transformation is nowhere near as dramatic as the IS 350 F Sport's. In fact, the NX F Sport is missing a setting: 'Sport Plus'. And that's because it doesn't have the sophisticated (and expensive) adaptive dampers that transform the IS F Sport into a canyon-carving luxury sedan. The transmission, too, doesn't seem to downshift as quickly as it does in the IS F Sport.

It may not be as aggressive as other F Sport models, but the NX 200t F Sport is still the one you want. It gets beefy strut tower braces that aren't like any you've ever seen before. Instead of a solid length of steel, aluminum, or carbon fiber, there's actually a small, fluid-filled shock absorber in the center of the bar to act as an NVH suppressor. It's brilliant. In addition to this brace, there are firmer springs, dampers, and bushings, as well as a meatier weighting to the electronic steering program.

That being said, all of these calibrations are subtle. You won't climb aboard an NX 200t F Sport and suddenly feel inspired to strap on a helmet and hit Laguna Seca. But these parts do help it corner more flatly and diminish suspension float as you approach its limits. The whole experience is much more crisp and lively than in the standard NX 200t or its hybrid sibling. More than anything, this is not a sports package that will beat you up on a rough road. Lexus was careful to balance ride comfort, quietness, and handling in a way that's appropriate to the vehicle.

4. One cool interior detail, and one that's lame

COOL: The F Sport package's sport seats are formed by injecting liquid foam into their skins instead of wrapping the hides around the foam, thus eliminating those hard spots you commonly find on sport-seat bolsters from tightly-stretched leather. NOT COOL: The small dial labeled "Active Sound Control"—activating it pumps in faux engine noise through the speakers. Call us old-school, but if the engine is worth listening to, then let's hear the actual engine, not an artificial, digitized, and amplified version of it.

5. To appeal to the kids, Lexus has banished the wood

Every crossover and SUV that has ever worn the Lexus badge has been stuffed with deep, dark, glossy wood trim bonded to nearly every surface. It's not exactly youthful. In the NX, there's no wood—unless you spring for the Luxury Package, which adds leather and something called "Linear Mocha" wood trim. Lexus also redesigned its Remote Touch Interface, replacing the mouse-like controller with a touchpad that operates like a smartphone or tablet, allowing you to pinch and zoom quickly. We dig it.

Slide into the back and there's an inch less of legroom than in the RAV4, but the rear seats get a slick power-folding function. The area behind those seats is compromised largely because of the NX's sleeker roofline—halved in comparison to a RAV4, and one of the tightest amongst its peers like the BMW X3 and Audi Q5. So as comfortable and fun as the F Sport might be, you'll probably need to pack creatively for road trips.